Hat Creek Post Labor Day

Article and photo by Michael Mogler
09/20/16 -- Hat Creek after Labor Day continues to receive CDFW plantings. This is great news for those anglers looking for uncrowded conditions with plenty of fish to go around. I stopped by Rim Rock Ranch for information on the continuing plantings and the news was good. Anglers are catching their limits including a few 3 plus pound brooders. California Fish and Wildlife will continue planting Hat Creek into October.

Colorful Hat Creek brook trout caught and released while fishing near Old Station, Shasta County. CDFW regularly plants Hat Creek during the general trout season in California.

Campgrounds are less crowded along with the various trout holding holes throughout the creek. I fished Hat Sunday afternoon for an hour and caught several brook trout. I caught my fish on a size 14 beaded Hares Ear. Mike, working the store at Rim Rock, reported anglers catching brook trout on nightcrawlers and gold color spinners. Mike prefers a gold Kastmaster which has produce fish. Stop by the Rim Rock Ranch Store at Old Station for information on conditions when fishing the area.

The general trout season will close November 15 so there’s plenty of time to take advantage of plenty of fish and less fishing pressure.

Hope to see you fishing Hat Creek or on the waters available in Shasta County.

Fishing Reports

A Hot Summer’s Day on Chico Creek

On Patrol by Steven T. Callan
07/25/16 -- I’ve been exploring Northern California’s streams -- above and below the surface -- for most of my life. One of my most memorable adventures took place on a hot summer’s day in 1964, not long after my sixteenth...Full Story Brownie’s Choice

By Don Webster
Disregard the story’s title. I don’t really have a “first” name. If I did, it would probably be something like Leviathan or Behemoth or maybe Lunker. Officially, I’m a trout. A brown trout. A giant, brown trout. Possibly the biggest, fattest...Full Story Keddie Ridge

Article and photos by Phil “Flip” Akers
11/14/15 -- Adjacent to both
Lake Almanor and Mountain Meadows, between the towns of Westwood and
Greenville, is a seemingly forgotten piece of backcountry; Keddie Ridge –
aka Ridge World – where ancient rocks... Full Story Let’s check out the Upper Sac

Article and photos by Phil "Flip" Akers
09/06/15 -- The Upper
Sacramento River – The Upper Sac – begins at Lake Siskiyou’s Box Canyon
Dam and continues ~37 miles downstream to Lake Shasta. It is a classic
freestone river born from the Mt. Shasta and Mt. Eddy... Full Story How to make Tuscan Tuna Salad with Fennel
By Frank Galusha
05/04/15 -- OK, you went ocean fishing. If your
fish is fresh or if you have processed, vacuum packed and frozen your
catch properly, there are many ways to enhance your meals. Almost
everything taken from the ocean is not... Full Story Fishing the Klamath below JC Boyle Dam

By Trouteagle
03/02/15 -- Year round trout action can be found on the Klamath River within the 20 or so miles of free flow within Oregon and California. While fishing below the flumes at the JC Boyle powerhouse, it can be difficult to know just when...Full Story Climbing Terms for the Fisherman

10/14/14 -- For those of us who prefer to fish the
rugged and remote streams and rivers for the elusive wild trout, rock
climbing is a skill that is required to reach the special places where
catching the big one is a “sure thing.” The skills...Full Story German brown trout afternoon in Modoc

By Lea Huetteman
09/04/14 -- Catching a German Brown Trout from the
creeks in Modoc County is a fine way to spend an afternoon. There are
many creeks in this part of California that drain the Warner Mountains.
Stream trout fishing in this region opens...Full Story Throw the kitchen sink at them

Article and photos by Phil Akers
08/20/14 -- Our wilderness areas are special, where Mother Nature is landlord and natural forces operate freely. Within the wilderness you will find no roads, shelters, picnic tables, toilets, or other conveniences. You enter at...Full Story Humboldt Bay: Busy port, excellent fishery

03/06/04 -- Humboldt Bay, a busy commercial harbor and home port to many
charter and private offshore fishing boats, is also popular with
shore-based anglers and small boaters seeking bottomfish, sharks, crabs
and clams...Full Story Pulled into the pipes: Green Sturgeon

By Erin Loury, FISHBIO
03/04/14 -- [Posted with permission of
FISHBIO] Living in the Sacramento River can be a risky business for
juvenile green sturgeon (Acipenser medirostris). The young fish must swim through a gauntlet of water... Full Story Not Just Any Fish

By Phil "Flip" Akers
02/14/13 -- Trout have inhabited California
waters from the Sierra Nevada and Warner Mountains to the Pacific Ocean
since prehistoric times. However, most of the trout caught by anglers
are either hatchery raised fish...Full Story

A preview of coming attractions...if you are planning
a trip to this area be forewarned: What photographers have captured will whet your appetite for what will be an outdoor journey filled with wonders.